Aggies Close Out November With Loss To Richmond

RICHMOND-The North Carolina A&T women's basketball team
battled hard in the second half of a matinee against Richmond at the Robins
Center on Wednesday, but saw their winning streak end at three games with a
76-63 loss to the Spiders.

The Aggies (3-3) outscored the Spiders (4-4) in the second
half with 60 percent shooting, but it wasn't enough to overcome their 22-point
halftime deficit.

"I just wish the team that showed up in the second half got
the game started in the first like that.
I thought after going into halftime, I challenged them to be better then
who they were in the first half, I think they responded," said A&T head
coach Tarrell Robinson. "I just told
them I can walk away proud if we can grow from this and understand that it goes
back to the effort and the little things that you take care of in
practice. We'll see the results when we
practice again and the results of the next game to see if we're moving
forward."

Senior JaQuayla Berry came off the bench to lead the team
with 19 points and three steals, including 15 second-half points. Sophomore Adriana Nazario and redshirt junior
Amber Calvin each provided 11 points for the Aggies. It was the first game this season that the
Aggies have had three players score in double figures.

A jumper from Berry made it 65-48 with 7:25 left in the game. A free throw by Gorham cut the Richmond lead
to 15 points, and then Calvin hit the 3-pointer to make it a 65-53 game with
5:22 left. It was the closest they had been since it was 31-19 with 5:32
remaining in the first half.

Three minutes later, Nazario
cut the deficit to 10 with two free throws. The Aggies remained behind by 10 with 1:32
remaining. Bilney collected her fourth 3-pointer of the
game with a minute left to give Richmond a commanding 74-61.

Berry went 6-for-8 from the floor and 3-for-4 from the line to
help propel the Aggies' resurgence in the second half. Robinson was pleased with her second half
leadership, but said he's looking for more from his preseason All-MEAC first
team selection.

"I know that's the type of JaQuayla Berry that we can get
night in and night out, and we hadn't gotten it in our first five games,"
Robinson said, adding that he started Tiffanie Adair in Berry's place to give
Berry the motivation she needed to perform at a higher level. "I just told her that I appreciate her
stepping up, but still there's more she can do. I know she can, and I plan to
get it out of her. I'm proud of the way
she performed in the second half."

The Aggies struggled in the first half to find their
offensive rhythm, making just 28 percent of their shots. The Spiders collected 19 points off of 14
A&T turnovers, and had 10 steals to pressure the Aggies. The Aggies shot just 3-for-18 in the first
nine minutes of the contest. The Spiders
then went on an 8-0 run in the next two minutes to gain a 20-point lead.

The Aggies will open up conference competition against their
archrival N.C. Central on Saturday at 2 p.m., at Corbett Sports Center. Robinson said he is eager to get his team off
to a strong start against the Eagles and to put two halves together in the
game. But more than that, he's look to put
a crooked number in the team's conference win column.

"It's the first conference game and we want to start out the
conference 1-0. That's our goal, to win
a championship," he said. "I'm sure
we'll have energy-Central is a rivalry game.
So I'm sure they'll be ready for that, and we'll
be prepared as well."